Whiskey Myers’ Cody Cannon on the Band’s Diverse Fan Base and Making Honest Music

When you talk to Cody Cannon of the group Whiskey Myers, you get the idea that the guys in the band have kept a level head when it comes to the success they are enjoying. Mud, their latest album, debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard Country Albums chart – without the benefit of a single on any chart. Their music has been described – depending on the source – as Country, Southern Rock, or Red Dirt. How does Cannon describe it? “We just call it music,” he says sheepishly, “I do think it’s cool that we can appeal to all of those genres because we have that in our music.”

If you attend a Whiskey Myers show, chances are you will be amazed at the demographic that is represented – or better yet, the lack thereof. Their fans, just as their music, run the gamut. “You have the young college kids, you’ve got cowboys, all the older people who are huge Skynyrd fans,” says Cannon. “We’ve got a very diverse fan base, and we love the fact that we don’t have to fit in a box, and we can just be ourselves.”

Cannon points out that it’s not their fan base that wants to categorize them, but rather an industry that doesn’t quite know where to place them. “They like for things to be nice and comfortable, but that’s not us. We want to be creative and to be able to do what we like, and have it come out naturally.”

So far, the band has opened for a wide array of artist, something that Cannon takes considerable pride in. “We’ve played for people like Jamey Johnson, then Hank Williams, Jr., or Lynyrd Skynyrd. It’s all very cool. It’s an amazing feeling,” he says, admitting that there’s not really a lot of opportunities to absorb things. “You have to take the time to soak it all in, because it happens so fast. I don’t know if it really hits you until after the fact.”

The band has developed a very loyal fan base, selling close to a half-million concert tickets – again, without the benefit of a Top-40 hit. “I think that speaks a lot to our fan base, as well as our live show,” says Cannon. “We pride ourselves on the fact people are out there, an they’re seeking out our music. Maybe that’s just a sign that good music breaks through and it touches people.”

One song that has definitely touched their fan base is the pride-filled story song “On The River,” of which Cannon said, “It just has that an old bounce. It’s an old story, and it fit great with those instruments, like the fiddle.”

The band also tips their hat to the land beyond the Mason-Dixon Line with the reverential “Deep Down In The South.” Just what is it about the south that conjures up so many images in song over the years? Cannon offers “I don’t know what it is. I guess it’s soul. We just write what we know, and we know our surroundings. It’s honest, and I think that’s something that you can always tell when it is. At least I can.”

Perhaps the emotional centerpiece of the disc is the Darrell Scott co-written “Trailer We Call Home,” of which Cannon says “That’s a very special song, and hits home to all of us. It’s just one of those songs that needed to be written. It’s about real life. It’s just an important song. You’ve got all these songs about hanging out in corn fields and stuff like that, but this was a soulful and heartfelt song. People really seem to love it so far. We do that one acoustic during a break in our set, and people seem to like it a lot.”

Sounds Like Nashville spoke with Cannon during a two-week break from the road, but he stressed that they don’t stray too far from the bus, as the tour never stops. “We’re always at it. It’s a part of it. We just love going out and making music.”

And, when they’re rolling down the highway, what is that culinary temptation they can’t seem to resist on the road? “I love those late night Whataburgers,” admits Cannon. “We don’t really eat a lot at night on the bus, but if we do, it’s usually a Whataburger run.”